April Fool's Day

by Jannika Forester

Most people have experienced both sides of April Fool’s Day. The feeling of exultation when a prank succeeds is often as powerful as the oft aggressive humiliation accompanying the other side of the coin. April Fool’s Day (or All Fool’s Day, as some of the kids call it) has been known as a day of jokes and fun for many years, yet like Apple Jacks cereal, no one knows why we do it. We just do.

Most historians seem to agree that April Fool’s Day came about due to the switching of New Year's Day from April 1 to January 1 and that those who did not celebrate New Year's Day on January 1 were April Fools. Stories differ. It is, however, ironically appropriate that a day set aside to celebrate gags and practical jokes has such an undefined history.

Regardless of the day's history, people have perpetrated some great April Fool’s Day pranks. One of the best April Fool’s Day pranks is the Swiss Spaghetti Harvest perpetrated by the British news show Panorama in 1957. They showed images of people wearing Swiss costumes and harvesting what appeared to be spaghetti. The prank fooled millions of people worldwide into believing that spaghetti grew on trees and thus set the standard for April Fool’s Day jokes. Another legendary April Fool’s Day prank is the article Sports Illustrated published about a pitcher named Sidd Finch who had supposedly been drafted by the New York Mets. The writer listed all these amazing stats in the article andfooled numerous baseball fans into believing them.

Pranks can be large or small, intricate or simple. A child might put a piece of toy plastic poop on Mom's pristine white carpet and convince her that Fido made a mess. A coworker might send a fake memo inviting everyone to cake and coffee in the lounge paid for by the boss. A student might tell a classmate that he has ketchup on his shirt when his shirt is clean. The popularity of April Fool’s Day ensures that one will either prank or be pranked on the first of April.

Think you're too old for non specific fun and merriment? For some hilarious pranks you could pull at work click here